IT’S NOT YOU, IT’S ME
HOW HANDLING CAN MAKE OR BREAK YOUR PERFORMANCE
by Betsy Scapicchio and Linda Brennan
O bedience is a team sport. There is nothing better than watching a handler and dog who perform together as one. We often focus only on the dog’s job, but our responsibility as the handler is just as important, if not more so. When it comes to the dance of com- petition Obedience, it is up to us to lead. At shows, handlers are quick to blame the external environment for the dog’s mistakes. However, we should be looking inward rather than outward. Ask yourself how the dog performed outside the ring com- pared to inside. If the dog was fine outside the ring, then the external environment is very similar and we need to ask a different question. Were you the same inside and outside the ring? What we need to focus on here are the cues that you are giving the dog. That includes the cues that you are consciously using, but also the many cues that you may not even be aware that you give your dog when you train and show. For example, if you look at your dog in training but don’t look at your dog in the ring, that is a huge change in the picture that your dog sees. If you use a food lure or tight leash in training, when these aides are not there in the ring, the dog doesn’t know how to perform the exercise. In training, we must prepare the dog for competition. That means us- ing the same cues and handling that are required in the ring. We must be consistent and predicable. Any change will cause the dog to ques- tion his job and perhaps make a mistake. For example, if you give your signal or verbal command differently than you do in training, you can expect that your dog may not recognize it. This might happen if you tend to hold your down signal in training but give the signal quickly in the ring. When this happens, people are quick to say that their dog is “ring wise,” implying that their dog is deliberately performing differ- ently in the ring than in training. However, it is not the dog’s fault if the handler is not performing the same in the ring as she does in training. When you are tempted to assume that an error is the dog’s fault, look at yourself first. Ask yourself whether you have given your dog the right information. Video can be very helpful. Film yourself in train- ing as well as in the ring and compare the two. Focus just on your handling. What do you see that is different? Remember that dogs are masters of body language, so every gesture and difference in your posture can have meaning to the dog. Strive to keep the picture of yourself that your dog is seeing consistent. For example, when you watch video of yourself in training, you might discover that you are talking to your dog frequently during times when you cannot talk in the ring. Your dog will certainly notice the difference and it may af- fect his performance. Heeling, in particular, requires the handler to do just as much work as the dog. If we are not smooth and precise, we cannot expect flaw- less heeling from the dog. We love heeling because it is the ultimate
showcase for teamwork between dog and han- dler. The connection should be evident. This is a fluid exercise as the team executes turns, halts, and changes of pace, so the handler must be con- stantly cuing the dog. These need to be practiced and perfected, and then it is up to the handler to lead the dog in the ring. Your heeling cannot be better than your ability to do your part in your performance. A very common example of the impact of handling on heeling in the ring is when the dog fails to sit on a halt. This is most often the handler’s fault for failing to cue the dog in the same way as in training. Heeling is not the only part of your time in the ring that requires good handling. Every second that you spend in competition requires you to be on your game. Not only do you need to be con- sistent with your cues for the dog for each exer- cise, but the transitions in between are just as important. How you handle your dog between exercises can set the dog up for success or failure.
38 • T op N otch T oys , N ovember 2022
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